AFC contender linked with shock move for superstar WR as trade ...

28 Apr 2023

Fox Sports

A major AFC contender is reportedly having conversations about going up as high as No. 3 in the NFL Draft.

The Arizona Cardinals hold the No. 3 pick but have made no secret they are happy to trade back and potentially scoop up future picks as well as other assets.

Watch the 2023 NFL Draft live on Kayo via ESPN, beginning 10am AEST Friday April 28. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >

According to ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio, the Cardinals and the Tennessee Titans are locked in conversations about swapping picks.

Not only that, but the Titans could receive star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins while the Cardinals would get a handy amount of picks in return.

However, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport has since refuted those claims. Rapoport tweeted: “While the Titans have had conversations about a potential trade up to No. 3 — among other spots — they have not had conversations centred around star WR DeAndre Hopkins, source said.”

Although that may be the case for now, there’s no smoke without fire.

Could DeAndre Hopkins be on his way to the Titans? (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

READ MORE

‘TELLING FRIENDS AND FAMILY’: NFL Draft shock looms

‘IT SCARES YOU’: Worrying truth behind NFL’s draft dark horse

‘CAN DO IT ALL’: Inside mind of Aussie record-breaking ‘unicorn’

What seems certain is the Titans are in the market for a quarterback, with plenty of top talent set to go in the first round.

There are four big quarterback prospects up for grabs — Alabama’s Bryce Young, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, Kentucky’s Will Levis and Florida’s Anthony Richardson.

There is a genuine possibility that quarterbacks will be taken with the opening four overall picks, the first time it would have ever happened in a draft.

The Carolina Panthers (No.1) and Indianapolis Colts (No.4) are almost certainties to select quarterbacks, but the Houston Texans (No.2) are rumoured to be looking elsewhere, and the Arizona Cardinals (No.3) already have a long-term quarterback in the injured Kyler Murray.

Young remains the betting favourite to be the first overall pick.

The Chicago Bears were originally set to have the first pick, but the position was traded to the Panthers in exchange for the No. 9 and No. 61 picks of this year’s draft, a first round pick in 2024, a second-round pick in 2025 and wide receiver D.J. Moore.

The first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, a three-day extravaganza in Kansas City, gets underway on Friday at 10am AEST.

Quarterback Bryce Young of Alabama, the favourite to go No.1. Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images

First Round Draft Order (Start of day)

Pick 1 — Carolina Panthers

Pick 2 — Houston Texans

Pick 3 — Arizona Cardinals

Pick 4 — Indianapolis Colts

Pick 5 — Seattle Seahawks

Pick 6 — Detroit Lions

Pick 7 — Las Vegas Raiders

Pick 8 — Atlanta Falcons

Pick 9 — Chicago Bears